What is the purpose of audit planning if the audit may not ultimately follow the carefully thought out plan?  As may be inferred from Dwight D. Eisenhower's words—"Plans are worthless, but planning is everything"—the value of audit planning is not derived solely from the resulting audit plan.  Daniel Gartland, risk control consultant at CNA, describes the importance of detailed planning. To read the full ar ...

Fraudulent Payroll and Expense Schemes (Part III of III) This article represents the third installment of a three-part series discussing the potential for embezzlement within an organization by its Accountant Bookkeeper Office Manager (ABOM). Part one discussed how the ABOM could mishandle incoming cash receipts to commit fraud. Part two discussed how the ABOM could mishandle outgoing cash disbursements to ...

Cash Receipts (Part I of III) This article represents the first of a three-part series discussing the potential for embezzlement within an organization by its accountant/bookkeeper/office manager (ABOM). ABOM is considered one of the most trusted employees within an organization, making them prime candidates to commit internal fraud. On a daily basis, an ABOM may be dealing with incoming cash receipts, cash ...

Simple Steps to Save Hundreds of Thousands of Dollars By implementing just a few simple steps and procedures, business owners can catch or prevent financial fraud that can have devastating financial and personal consequences. In this article, Chris Hamilton outlines six simple steps business owners can put into practice today. ...

  Nathan J. Mueller embezzled $8.5 million in barely four years from financial giant, ING through a series of corporate incompetence, “happy” accidents and missteps inside the company. His case is unique in the amount of money he stole and the length of time it went undetected. The breach of controls at ING was astonishing, but not nearly as incredible as hearing Mueller describe how easy it was in his ...

Avoiding the “Why Me’s”: Easy-to-Implement Steps to Mitigate Fraud Risk Financial fraud can be devastating and fiscal, legal, and developmental repercussions can impede the operations of a business for years after an incident. Paul E. Zikmund takes us through his four-step process to actively deter fraud within an organization. ...

Whether you are engaged in a business valuation or a forensic investigation, do you know exactly what to do if you suspect that an employee of the subject company is committing theft? Darrell Dorrell and Gregory Gadawski provide company owners, CFOs, valuators, and forensic accountants with a check list of how to proceed in fraud investigations. The key procedural ingredient is caution. Here’s why. ...

Learn How the Pros Take Down an Embezzlement Scheme and Gather Tips on How to Best Defend Your Own Practice. Mark S. Warshavsky reviews Stephen Pedneault’s Anatomy of A Fraud Investigation. The book combines a step-by-step recounting of best practices with real-life drama as investigators discover, investigate, and resolve a fraud incident—a fantastic guide to how to defend against and uncover fraud. ...